


Remembering You

by DarkAliceLilith



Category: IT - Stephen King
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-01
Updated: 2020-05-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:40:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23936998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkAliceLilith/pseuds/DarkAliceLilith
Summary: Richie sighed and sat back in his chair, his gaze falling on the boy again. Why did he look so familiar?
Relationships: Ben Hanscom/Richie Tozier
Kudos: 14





	Remembering You

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for the It fandom exchange on tumblr.

Richie found it hard to focus on the lecture happening, his gaze instead on the boy a few seats away. Richie had been drawn to him immediately. He felt familiar and there was a sense of longing when they locked eyes, but as Richie tried to rack his brain of where he had seen him, or even his name, all that came back to him was a fogginess. 

A kick to his shin brought him out of his thoughts and he turned towards Sandy who was sitting next to him. They had been friends since their first year at college, bonding immediately over comics and love of comedies. She felt like the sister he had never had, though his mind would always briefly remind him that he did in fact have a sister, one he had formed in friendship, but always quickly dismissed the thought. There was no sister, just like there was no way he knew this boy in his literature class.

“You should go talk to him,” Sandy whispered, leaning closer to him so no one around them could hear. 

“Why?”

“Cause you keep staring.”

“I have not been staring.”

Sandy let out a loud laugh, one that caught the attention of the boy close by, along with the professor and the rest of the class. “Something you’d like to share?” The professor asked.

“No, sir,” Sandy answered, dropping her gaze down to the book in front of her. 

Once the professor went back to the lecture, Richie leaned close. “I just feel like I know him, but I can’t figure out why.”

“Then go talk to him,” She whispered. “Go ask him his name and ask him to go get a coffee with you or something, but for fucks sake, just say something instead of staring. He’s going to notice at some point.”

Richie sighed and sat back in his chair, his gaze falling on the boy again. Why did he look so familiar?

He finally gained the courage to say something a few weeks later as everyone was filing out of class. The boy hadn’t left his seat yet, jotting something down in a worn notebook, seemingly unconcerned about leaving. Sandy gave Richie a pat on the shoulder before leaving him behind and Richie nervously made his way towards the other boy.

“A face like yours, I’m surprised I haven’t spotted you around campus,” Richie tried.

“I just transferred this semester,” the boy said, closing his notebook and looking up. “Can I help you?”

Richie felt his heart stutter in his chest as he looked into those eyes. They were beautiful and Richie found himself conjuring up a memory preteen with those same eyes, shorter and thicker than the boy who sat before him now, but the face was blurred. All he could make out was the eyes. 

“Richie,” he got out. “My name is Richie Tozier.”

“I know,” the boy said. Richie looked at him in surprise. “I mean, I don’t know you but I feel like I do. I’m Ben Hanscom.”

“Well, Ben, do you think maybe I could buy you a coffee sometime and we can figure out together why we seem so familiar to each other?” Richie asked, feeling even more nervous. There was something about this boy and he just wanted to get to know him better. 

Ben stared at him for a long moment and Richie shifted nervously. He was beginning to think that listening to Sandy was a terrible idea until Ben nodded. “Yeah. I have some free time on Saturday if you want to meet.”

“I’m free then too! Does the coffee shop on Main Street sound good?”

“Yeah,” Ben said, shoving the rest of his things into his bag and standing up. “I’ll be there at eleven.”

It was much earlier than Richie liked to get up on the weekends, but he nodded. “Saturday at eleven! See you there, Haystack!”

Ben’s eyebrows furrowed. “What did you say?”

Richie stood there frozen for a long moment. “I uh-I’m sorry. It just slipped out,” he said quickly and running a hand through his hair. “I don’t know why I said it.”

“It’s alright. I’m not mad. It’s just been a long time since I heard that nickname,” Ben said. “Actually, I just remembered it was even a nickname at all.” Ben seemed distressed for a moment before shaking his head. “I’ll see you on Saturday.”

By the time Saturday came, Richie was a nervous wreck. He had spent much of Friday pacing the living room of the apartment he shared with Sandy. He had considered not going at all, but she shoved him out the door with a smile and a “Good luck.”

So now he stood just outside the coffee, his hands shoved in his pockets and his eyes averted to the ground. He didn’t know why he felt so nervous, but there was something about Ben that made him feel strange. 

“Richie.” Richie looked up to see Ben holding the door open. He knew he was late for the meeting and wondered if Ben had spotted him through the window. “Are you alright?” 

Richie nodded. “Yeah. Just tired.” It wasn’t much of a lie. He had a hard time sleeping the previous night, unable to stop thinking about Ben. “I just need some coffee and I’ll be fine.”

Richie walked in and ordered his coffee before sitting down across from Ben, his leg bouncing up and down from nervousness as they sat in silence for a long moment.

“You ever been to Maine?” Richie asked, trying to break the silence.

Ben nodded. “Yeah. I lived in Derry for a bit.”

“Me too,” Richie said. “I lived there most my life but the weird thing is when I try and remember it’s just-“

“Foggy,” Ben finished and Richie nodded, another memory hitting him. This one of a space in the woods and a hidden door. There had been other kids there too. None of their faces he could see clearly, but he remembered comics and showercaps and the smell of cigarette smoke. 

“It’s the same for me. I honestly forgot all about Derry until I saw you in class, but it’s like there’s this smokescreen over the memories there. I know I had friends, friends I loved very much, and then there was this boy who…” Ben trailed off, his cheeks going pink. He took a sip of his coffee falling silent for a moment. “Now that we’re talking, more is coming back to me, but the faces are still blurred. You were one of them weren’t you? You had to be.”

Richie sat back in his seat. “Six other kids?” Ben nodded. “I remember six other kids too. So we must have been friends, but why can’t we remember?”

“I don’t know,” Ben answered. He leaned forward. “There’s a feeling like I shouldn’t be pressing, like there was something in Derry that I wanted to forget, but sitting in front of you, I want to remember. If you were one of those friends, then I would like to get to know you again.”

Richie felt himself began to smile. “So does that mean you and me are going to be seeing more of each other?”

“I mean, if that’s something you would be interested in,” Ben said.

Richie’s smile grew. “I am very much interested, Ben. You have a piece of paper on you?” Ben nodded and pulled out a notebook, opening it up to a blank page. Richie quickly jotted down his number and pushed the notebook back. “That’s the best way to reach me, if you want to make plans for another meet up.”

Ben wrote down his own number and tore it off to hand it to Richie, their fingers brushing. It occurred to Richie then that it was the first time there had been any physical contact between them and it felt as though a shock ran through him, hitting him with a memory.

Sitting in the back of a darkened, near empty movie theater as a horror movie played on the screen, but he hadn’t been paying attention. He instead had been focused on the boy sitting beside him, the butter from the popcorn they had been sharing shining on his lips. 

Then a kiss. It was quick, just a press of their lips together, before the two boys were jumping apart. Not a word had been said between them, but as the movie played on, Ben had set his hand next to Richie’s on the arm rest between them, their pinkies touching. 

In the present, Ben pulled his hand away, his face bright red and his eyes averted. Richie wondered if he had remembered the same thing. 

“Trashmouth,” Ben said. “Everyone called you Trashmouth.” He sat back, looking at Richie with a mix of emotions. “I have somewhere I need to be, but maybe tonight we could meet for dinner.”

Richie nodded. “Yeah, let’s do that.” Ben stood up and started to leave, but Richie reached out to take Ben’s hand, pulling him close. “You got real hot, Haystack,” he whispered, careful to not be overheard.

There was a blush on Ben’s face again and he pulled his hand away, stuttering out, “I’ll call you about tonight and we can figure out where to go eat.”

“I can’t wait,” Richie said, smiling up at Ben. He couldn’t remember everything yet, but there was one thing he knew for certain, Ben had been someone very, very special to him and he was ready to see if he would be someone again.


End file.
